Arrested Journalist: “Scott Walker Is A Puppet Of The American Legislative Exchange Council” (VIDEO)

Published On August 19, 2013 | By james |

Matthew Rothschild, The editor and publisher of The Progressive magazine, recently discussed his unceremonious arrest inside the Wisconsin state capital by Governor Scott Walker’s Capital police;

“This was in the Capitol — a public space, and I followed them down there and I was taking pictures, and they said, ‘You can’t come here.’ And I said, ‘Well, I’m a reporter, I’m with The Progressive magazine.’ They said, ‘No, you can’t come here.’ I said, ‘I’m with the press. I have a right to be here.’ And with that, I didn’t get another word out because they grabbed my hands, put them behind my back and handcuffed me right then and there.”

Union-busting in particular enraged Wisconsinites, as Wisconsin is the very birthplace of the labor movement and organized labor. In splitting the unions, Walker (R) promised this would create a plethora of jobs around the state; in actuality Wisconsin ranks 44th in job growth in the United States from September 2011 to September 2012, and unemployment has jumped to 7.2 percent.

The “unlawful protests” that are causing hundreds of arrests are known around the state as the Solidarity Sing- Alongs, which started at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison on March 11, 2011, during the ultimately unsuccessful Scott Walker recall efforts and have been held at noon every weekday since then, with arrests happening by the dozens on a daily basis. They are nothing more than peaceful gatherings of singers that are protesting Walkers reign of terror.

This video shows Wisconsin Friar Philip Gerboc proclaiming that the daily string of arrests are “no less than fascism,” and another shows the Capital Police injuring a 70 year old Vietnam Veteran while arresting him for nothing more than peacefully singing protect songs. Even state Rep. Sondy Pope (D-Middleton) was threatened with arrest simply for watching the demonstrations.

In an interview with Democracy Now!, Rothschild and host Amy Goodman discussed what indeed looks like a potential Walker presidential run. Rothschild called the prospect “horrifying,” and added;

“He is devastating the state. He can talk all he wants, but he’s ruining what used to be a pretty decent state here. He’s cut Medicaid, he’s cutting abortion rights, he’s let the mining companies write their own law and it’s going to destroy the environment in the northern parts of the state including on Native American lands… Scott Walker is a puppet of the American Legislative Exchange Council.”